DRA 505 Van Ness Avenue San Francisco, CA 94102 Division of Ratepayer Advocates Phone: (415) 703-2544 California Public Utilities Fax: (415) 703-2057 Commission http://dra.ca.gov
Dana S. Appling, Director
DATA REQUEST
Southern California Gas Company
Application No. 08-09-023
Date: January 15, 2009
Due Date: January 30, 2009
To: Andrew Steinberg Phone: (213) 244-3817 Regulatory Manager For: E-mail: [email protected] Southern California Gas Company E-mail: [email protected] 555 West 5th Street, GT 14D6 E-mail: Los Angeles, CA 90013 E-mail:
From: Robert Levin Phone: (415) 703-1862 Project Coordinator, A.08-09-023 E-mail: [email protected] Division of Ratepayer Advocates E-mail: [email protected] Electricity Pricing & Customer E-mail: [email protected] Programs E-mail: [email protected] 505 Van Ness Avenue, Room 4102 San Francisco, CA 94102
Data Request No: SCG-A0809023-018
Originated by: Robert Levin Phone: (415)703-1862
Subject: Dedicated In-home Displays
Please provide the following information as it becomes available but no later than January 30, 2009. If you are unable to provide the information by this date, please provide a written explanation to the originator by January 23, 2009 as to why the response date cannot be met and your best estimate of when the information can be provided. If you have any questions regarding this data request, please call the originator at the above phone number. Please also indicate the name of the person answering each of DRA’s questions. In each
1 and every response to the data request question(s), please provide cross- references to the testimony, workpapers, and a hardcopy of any supporting material. Fully explain any calculations, assumptions inherent in the calculations, and any other assumptions supporting your response.
Background: For San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E)’s “Smart Meter” program, a “Technical Advisory Panel” (TAP) has been establish to provide technical guidance to SDG&E’s gas and electric AMI rollout. The SDG&E TAP recently (November 7, 2008) issued a report detailing its technical recommendations. The following questions address excerpts from the TAP report which may be relevant to SoCalGas’ AMI proposal.
1. Please describe the extent to which SoCalGas has participated in or monitored the SDG&E TAP.
2. The following excerpts are from the TAP report issued November 7, 2008. For each paragraph below, please indicate whether the issues addressed are applicable to the SoCalGas AMI proposal, and if so, please describe how SoCalGas plans to deal with the issue.
3.2 Technology Status and Concerns
Security. Information protection and security through the AMI system are general concerns of the industry. As of today, no AMI vendors have completely satisfied the security concerns. ….. SDG&E has included budget provisions in the project plan to support the security enhancements. Endpoint Product Portfolio. … ZigBee modules for gas meters have yet to be field proven. As contingencies, SDG&E should establish a second meter source. Home Area Network (HAN). All electric meters to be deployed will have a standard ZigBee radio for communication with gas modules and HAN devices and gas modules. System development is giving priority to Programmable and Controllable Thermostats and In-Home Displays. Itron is also developing Web services to support HAN in the OpenWay Data Collection engine. A proof of concept study is scheduled to be completed at the end of 2008. ZigBee. The Itron OpenWay system relies on the Smart Energy Profile for communications between electric meters and Home Area Network devices. The ZigBee standard is still evolving, particularly as it converges with Home Plug. Battery Life Expectancy. Despite claims by manufacturers and lab test results, there has not been adequate field, operational experience in the
2 industry at large to validate life expectancy of batteries in gas modules and data collectors.
3. Sarah Darby’s testimony contains the following statement, in footnote 1, p.V- 1:
“Several gas AMI technology vendors propose communications capabilities that will communicate with home information gateway devices or home area network (HAN) display devices.”
Has SoCalGas included the cost of providing such communications capabilities in its AMI cost-benefit analysis? If so, please provide a citation to SoCalGas’ AMI workpapers.
4. The paragraph below addressing HANs is excerpted from the November 7, 2008 report of the SDG&E TAP (as described in Question 1). Please describe the extent to which the concepts of this paragraph apply to the SoCalGas AMI proposal.
4.1.1. Home Area Network (HAN)
AMI and Smart Meter will enable utility communication with the customer’s individual end-use devices and HAN, which in turn will provide customers with opportunities to manage their usage in response to time-varying electricity pricing or participate in pay-for-performance demand response programs. The SDG&E Smart Meter Program’s adoption of the Open HAN and ZigBee standards allows for an industry to develop around demand for customer-owned HAN devices and applications. SDG&E is, and should continue to be an active participant of the Open HAN and ZigBee development and testing efforts.
5. Does SoCalGas intend to be an active participant of the Open HAN and ZigBee development and testing efforts (e.g., as described above in Question 4)?
6. Carol Manson of SDG&E’s Regulatory Affairs department included the following bullet in an e-mail summary of a recent TAP meeting:
There is strong consensus from the TAP that SDG&E should work with the other IOUs to achieve device compatibility between IOU service territories, if possible.
Assuming that “device” refers to a “dedicated in-home display” device as that terminology is used in Chapter V; does SoCalGas plan to co-ordinate with other IOUs to achieve device compatibility between IOU service territories? If so, please describe such plans.
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